Letting the 'vacation vibe' rub off on us

One of my favorite philosophers, Yogi Berra, once said. "Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded." He could have been talking about Estes Park...

Every year, about this time of the summer, I start hearing folks talking about how bad the traffic is, how crowded it is in town, and how there are so many people here. We do have some serious issues that need to be addressed as a community. Each year we seem to be getting more visitors. Parking restrictions at Bear Lake and other areas of the national park are a daily occurrence. Traffic backups getting through town can extend way past the U.S. 34/36 intersection. I've had many conversations with locals about the chaos at Safeway trying to buy groceries, and how challenging it is to get into a restaurant for lunch or dinner. A number of people have told me they just avoid downtown completely this time of year — too many people, too crowded, too noisy, just too much of too much... Just waiting for the days in January when it's quiet and there are no lines in the grocery store.

Crowds bring many serious issues, and Town staff is working with our friends at Rocky Mountain National Park and others in the community to keep this a premier mountain community for both our guests and our residents. But beyond the serious work on addressing the increasing number of visitors, there's also the atmosphere and attitude toward summertime in Estes Park. To paraphrase Catherine the Great, "It either gives you inspiration or a headache." I have to admit, I actually enjoy the vibrance and atmosphere all the folks visiting from every corner of the globe bring to our town.

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My wife, Jill, and I enjoy walking down Elkhorn in summer and watching and listening to all the people on vacation. People are in a good mood. They're on VACATION! Children are enjoying an ice cream cone or taffy. I love talking with people standing around taking pictures of the elk. They are amazed to see these magnificent creatures so close, just walking through town. I love the crazy questions about the elk, bears, the elevation and — what is the white stuff on top of the mountains? Yes, they sometimes stop in the middle of the road to snap a picture, but that is because this is such a special place. (I did the same thing in Florida when I saw an alligator, much to the chagrin of the locals, I'm sure.) People save their money all year for a vacation in our community. They feel fortunate to experience for a few days what we get to see year-round. I love the exuberance and excitement of the visitors who are so happy to finally be here.

It's true, it's harder to quickly stop for groceries on the way home, but it's also a great place to people watch. It's fun to hear the diversity of accents and languages. It's fun to see families heading off to a camping trip, loading up on graham crackers, marshmallows and Hershey bars, or try to explain to them what 3.2 beer is and why it's the only thing you can buy in the grocery store. T-shirts and baseball caps are great indicators... folks with the Cardinals T-shirt and cap, wandering the aisles with Cubby's fans — obviously from Illinois. Teens in high school letter jackets from everywhere in the country, and of course visitors from Europe, Asia and other international locales proudly wearing their new Estes Park, Colorado, T-shirts.

One of my favorite things to do is ask someone where are they from. Once they find out you are a local and actually LIVE here, I can't tell you how many times people make a comment about how lucky we are and they are absolutely right. We are lucky to live here. It's nice to be reminded of that from time to time. I always end the conversation with telling them I'm glad they're here.

So the next time you're in a crowded restaurant or stuck in line at the grocery store, rather than get frustrated, take a deep breath and let some of the "vacation vibe" from those folks around you rub off a little bit, and remember how lucky we are to live here.

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